Grown-Up Children
by bringonthew0nder
Summary: Merlin and Arthur travel to a druid's home to make peace, not knowing she has a different plan in mind for them. Arthur and Merlin version of Freaky Friday! No slash, just bromance. Humor and angst, takes place some time in season 5 before the last three episodes.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello all! I'm back with another Merlin fic! This is just supposed to be a fun little fic, a little bit of angst because of...stuff, you'll see. No slash this time, just the Merlin/Arthur bromance that I love so much. I hope you guys enjoy it, and please leave reviews! I know it's a short first chapter, I just wanted to test the waters and see what you guys thought of this idea. I don't own Merlin or any of its characters! Enjoy! **

"Don't be such a girl,_ Mer_lin," Arthur teased, "You've done far braver things than this." Merlin sighed and replied,

"But sire, if she's a druid, she won't-" Arthur looked at him seriously.

"You've dealt with magical folk before, why does this scare you now?" Merlin shuddered.

"It's just different. I can feel it."

"You can _feel_ it? God, you're hopeless," Arthur said. Merlin's shoulders sagged slightly. He hated when Arthur told him he was useless or hopeless. He knew Arthur didn't believe it, but it still hurt when he said it. The druid woman's house was still a mile away, but that mile passed quickly, and soon enough, they arrived at a humble cottage, hidden well by the foliage.

When Arthur knocked and the woman answered, Merlin raised his eyebrows when he saw her. She was beautiful, with spiraling auburn curls that fell perfectly into place, porcelain skin with freckles dashed about, and sharp, bright green eyes. But she had a thick scar, marring her features, running from the left side of her chin to the right side of her forehead. She gave both of them a look, knowing they were staring at it. Merlin cleared his throat and said,

"M'lady Morean, my name is Merlin, and my companion is the King of Camelot, Arthur Pendragon." Her mouth curled up into an interesting smirk when she heard their names.

"King Arthur and his manservant, Merlin. I have heard and seen a lot about you two. Come in." Her gaze lingered on Merlin and her eyes sparkled as if she knew a secret. Merlin knew she knew who he was. As she turned to lead them inside, Merlin caught a glimpse of the black triskele tattoo on her neck, just below her ear. Morean sat them down on two comfortable chairs and then sat across from them, hands crossed.

"What is it that you require from me?" she asked immediately. Arthur glanced at Merlin and said,

"We...I simply wanted to acknowledge you, a druid, as welcome inside the borders of Camelot. While I have not allowed magic inside my borders as of now, I am allowing peaceful existence of the druids so long as they cause me no trouble or harm." Morean raised an eyebrow and leaned back.

"I was unaware that I was not welcome here in the first place. I was also unaware I needed your permission to live here."

Arthur looked uncomfortable. "Well, ah, yes, you do. As the king, I do have the right to-"

"Do not tell me whether I have the right to live or not to live because I have magic," she hissed suddenly, her eyes blazing, "It was not my choice as to whether or not I have it. You cannot tell me I am condemned because of who I am. You have no right to tell me now everything is okay because you are allowing us to live, but still hidden, away from everyone else." She straightened up, still glaring at Arthur, but visibly calming down. Merlin shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"I meant no disrespect, Lady Morean. It's just that magic has been the root of a lot of-"

"Your problems? Ha, I say. Ha!" she cut him off, "You are more of a fool than I thought, Arthur Pendragon. For it is not magic's fault what it is used for. It is who wields it who is at fault." She said the last part rather softly before standing suddenly.

"I believe you both deserve a reward for coming here." Arthur and Merlin were taken aback.

"No reward is necessary, my lady, we did nothing but upset you…"

"No, I insist," she smiled mischievously again before commanding, "**Gehæftan**." Arthur yelped as roots quickly started to wind out of the ground and around his ankles. He stood, as did Merlin, succeeding in knocking both of them down. The roots happily looped themselves around them, restraining them too tightly to break free. Morean smiled and told them,

"You'll thank me later. **Wanne nædran, bebiede þæt. Gestrenge me nu forwiernan switchangea - Arthur et Merlin**!" Her hands were raised and she quickly lowered them, aiming one of her arms at each of them. They both flinched as golden light hit them, and not painfully, started to transform them.

((()))

Merlin woke up first. The roots holding him to the floor had vanished, and Lady Morean was nowhere to be seen. He scowled when he sat up slowly, his head throbbing painfully. He put a hand up to his head before frowning at the hand before him. It was not his hand.

For one thing, his fingers should have been longer and his hand more delicate. This hand was also more tan than his, and scarred and callused in different ways than his own. Merlin looked at his other hand and found the same problem. He suddenly felt a lot heavier, as well. He looked down and found he was wearing chainmail. To be exact, the chainmail the knights of Camelot wore.

Then Merlin turned around and found Lady Morean's full length mirror and screamed.

He tested it once, twice, and three times. The body was definitely his. But it wasn't. He was in Arthur's body. None of this was his. His scream, unfortunately, had awoken the real king, and Arthur slowly opened his own eyes. The minute he saw Merlin he stood and grabbed for his sword. Being in Merlin's clothes, he did not find it. Frustration glinted in his eyes as he quickly approached Merlin and hissed,

"What sorcery is this? What have you done to me?" Merlin stifled a laugh and with his face deadpan, told Arthur,

"Uh, look in the mirror. You're me." Arthur shoved him, not understanding that his friend was in his body and gave a sharp gasp when he looked in the mirror. Then he looked at Merlin again.

"Merlin?" he asked cautiously.

"Yup. Although Lady Morean's gotten off to somewhere, not really sure where, so I guess we're stuck." He put his hands on his hips to emphasize the point and Arthur hissed,

"Stop that. You can't be me." Merlin looked down at his new body and back up.

"Well I am, and there doesn't seem to be an obvious solution. Sorry." Merlin caught a look on his own face that Arthur made that he wished not to see again. Arthur gritted his teeth and pointed out,

"_Mer-lin_. We can't be seen like this. You can't be me! You'd be a blundering fool and...and I know you have everyone's best interests at heart, but you could easily mess everything up! You don't even know how to hold a sword!" Merlin smirked and pulled a sword out of his belt, twirling it in his hand before doing a couple of fighting moves and then sheathing it again.

"I beg to differ. Besides, this could be fun. Think of what Gwen will-"

Arthur's eyes widened and he grabbed Merlin by the front of his chainmail. "You can't tell Gwen about this. And you can't...Merlin, you have to sleep somewhere else. You will not be in bed with my wife!" Merlin gave a sarcastic smirk and raised an eyebrow.

"Why not?"

"MERLIN!"

"I'm kidding, Arthur, calm down," Merlin laughed. Arthur glared at him and Merlin straightened his face. Or he straightened Arthur's face. Whichever. "Okay, okay, I'm being serious. But you're telling me you don't find this even a little bit funny?"

"No."

"No what?"

"You know what I mean! Don't make me smack you!"

"Ah-ah-ah, you forget, I'm in _your_ body now. The stronger one. Meaning _I_ would be the one smacking _you_." Arthur looked rather helpless and Merlin felt bad for teasing him. He cleared his throat. "Sorry."

"I should hope so. What are we going to do? We can't fix this without magic, obviously." That was when Merlin suddenly remembered one of the perks about being himself. Magic. He coughed, then started coughing violently and Arthur clapped him on the back. "Don't choke me please, Merlin! You alright?" he asked. Merlin nodded and held up a finger for one minute.

The good thing about the transformation was that they didn't seem to be able to access each other's memories, so that part stayed with them in their consciousness. They only inherited the body and the muscle memory that came with it. The minute Arthur had to act quickly and almost in an instinctual manner, Merlin feared, he would use magic accidentally and his talent would be discovered. Crap.

"I've just decided this isn't funny anymore, this is definitely bad," Merlin said.

"You don't say?" Arthur replied sardonically. Merlin smirked at seeing himself be sarcastic.

"Well, what are we going to do about it?"

"Not sure, but I have no excuse to be on an extended trip until we find a cure, so we're going to have to get back to Camelot and...well, it looks like we're going to have to try our best to be each other." Arthur tripped over a bucket of water. "Look at that, I'm doing well already." Merlin rolled his eyes - Arthur's eyes - and gestured for them to leave.

"Come on then." Merlin smirked and added, "Did you like my eye rolling there? It was a very good impression of you." Arthur glared at him and joked,

"Uncanny."

"You know we're going to have to tell at least Gwen about this, right? And probably Gaius?" Merlin asked.

"Why?"

"Well, unless you want me in bed with Gwen every night thinking I'm you - "

"Alright, alright, we'll tell Gwen...but who says she'll believe us? Gaius will, but Gwen may not."

"That's up to Gwen, I suppose, but I think she'll take the precaution of not being _overly_ friendly, if you know what I mean…"

"_Merlin_! You're talking about the queen!"

"Yes? And? I'm stating facts!" Merlin replied indignantly.

"Well, stop it." Merlin sighed and mounted the horse with Arthur's help, who looked very unhappy with doing so. Merlin smirked; this could still be fun.


	2. Chapter 2

**So this is an angst-y one. Arthur's being a bitch ('scuse my french) and Merlin doesn't like it. Tell me what you think when you review, and please tell others about it. I apologize for the length of time between each chapter, as I am and will be very busy this summer. I'm trying to get at least one chapter up a week. I'm not sure how long it'll be, but you'll know when it's finished. Please review! I do not own Merlin!**

"What if the knights found out? What if _Gwaine_ found out? Oh God, I couldn't bear it if he found out; he'd never shut up about it!" Merlin rolled his eyes. This was the third time Arthur had brought this up. Irritably, he turned around and snapped,

"Arthur. _Shut. Up_. You're doing an excellent impression of me, but I really need to focus right now. We're almost back." It was true; the castle loomed ahead of them. It would take them no longer than five minutes to reach the front door. When they got there, Arthur came up and started to haul Merlin inside when Merlin glanced at him, giving him a hard stare and whispered,

"You can't do that." Arthur rolled his eyes, but released his grip on Merlin. The two immediately made their way to Gaius, desperate to see if there was a quick fix. Merlin approached Gaius, but of course, as Arthur, Gaius looked affronted to see the king approach him so quickly.

"Is there a problem, sire?" a slightly surprised looking Gaius asked.

"Uh," Merlin started awkwardly, "Well, that's the thing. I'm _not_ Arthur." Gaius raised an eyebrow, or rather, it looked like he did, since his eyebrow was always raised. He looked around Merlin at Arthur in Merlin's body.

"Merlin?" he asked, "Can you explain this?" Arthur slowly approached Gaius and stood next to Merlin.

"I'm Arthur, and this is Merlin. We've, ah, we seemed to have switched bodies," Arthur explained awkwardly. Gaius looked even more surprised.

"If that's true...that's very powerful magic. How did this happen?" He looked as though he was expecting them to yell 'Gotcha!', but they didn't.

"We went to a druid house to talk, just to talk, and she - ah - she wasn't really all that open to discussion. On...stuff," Merlin explained, before adding with a glare at Arthur, "I_ told_ him it wasn't a good idea."

"Shut up, Merlin," Arthur snapped, "This isn't my fault." Merlin looked surprised.

"I didn't say that…"

"Boys!" Gaius interrupted, "This is not time for bickering. Now I don't know how to fix this, at least not easily, but you're both going to have major problems if you don't act like each other until I find a solution." Merlin nodded.

"We know, it's just…" he gave Gaius a significant look and Gaius's eyes widened slightly. Arthur may find out that Merlin has magic by accidentally using it himself. Gaius then looked at Arthur and said,

"You're going to have to take up Merlin's duties, you know. Having Merlin do them as you is suspicious."

Arthur groaned, "So what is Merlin going to do, run the kingdom?"

"He's going to have to."

"Gaius...you're not serious," Arthur said, "This is Merlin we're talking about." Merlin cast him a hurt glance.

"I believe Merlin to be very responsible when he needs to be, sire. I think you should have more faith in his abilities," Gaius told Arthur a tad sternly. Arthur looked surprised at Gaius's tone and when he looked over and saw the look Merlin was giving him, he said,

"That's my hurt face. Why are you making my hurt face at me?" Merlin stopped and made his face blank.

"No reason, sire," he sighed.

((()))

The rest of the night went smoothly, as both Merlin and Arthur made a point to talk as little as possible. Merlin enjoyed sitting at Arthur's place and eating his food, while Arthur was greatly annoyed that he had to serve everyone and say nothing about it. Gwen held Merlin's hand the entire meal while Arthur glared at him from the corner. Merlin gave a small shrug, saying there wasn't anything to be done about it.

That night, Merlin managed to come up with an excuse to get away from Gwen, but they knew they'd have to tell her soon. Luckily, by the time Merlin came back to bed, Gwen was already asleep. Arthur scowled at him as he helped him undress and get into bed.

"Would you quit looking like someone stuck a sword up your ass?" Merlin hissed, "You know I'm cheerier than that...most of the time."

"Sorry, it's just a bit hard to see you going to bed with my wife."

"Arthur, she's already asleep. And besides, I'll make sure she doesn't do anything. I don't even like her like that, so it's not like I'll be sneaking or something. Stop worrying," Merlin said, "Now go. My bed isn't so bad. And neither is Gaius's cooking."

Arthur snorted. "We'll see about that."

((()))

Merlin woke up the next morning to a warm arm wrapped around him. He frowned before realizing it was just Gwen. He carefully pushed her arm away. She stirred lightly and when she woke up, she kissed the back of his neck. Merlin nearly jumped out of his skin in surprise and sat up quickly. Gwen frowned.

"Arthur? Are you okay?"

"Yeah...fine...sorry, Gwen. I'm just...uh, sick. A little cold. I mean, I have a cold. I don't want to get you sick," he said as smoothly as he could manage. Merlin gave a small sigh of relief when she nodded and laid back down.

"You sure you're okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, uh, Merlin's helping me get over it. It's nearly gone." Merlin gave a fake cough and stumbled out of bed. Arthur's bed was definitely more comfortable than his cot. Why was that?_ Because he's the king, you idiot._ Arthur came in a few minutes later and announced,

"Moorning!" Merlin looked over at him in surprise. Arthur grinned and walked up behind him and hissed in his ear,

"How on earth do you sleep on that?" Merlin shot Arthur a glare and hissed back,

"I think you should appreciate it more. I certainly do. It doesn't matter to me how comfortable my bed is, you prat." Merlin sat down at Arthur's desk and gave a paper an experimental flip. Arthur stood in front of him.

"Anything you need, sire?" he asked, though giving Merlin a sarcastic look. Merlin looked up at him completely seriously,

"Yes, I'll need my breakfast. And then you're going to have to clean my armor, and the stables, and polish my boots, oh, and saddle the horses…" The list went on and on, as usual. Arthur looked positively furious when Merlin was done listing everything he needed to do. Merlin noticed, and found he wasn't enjoying Arthur's annoyance as much as he thought he would. And it was just plain weird to be him. Merlin dismissed him and Arthur asked,

"Ah, sire, can I talk to you for a minute?" Merlin glanced at Gwen, almost for her help in getting him out of this, but she said nothing.

"Of course," he sighed, coming outside with his friend. Arthur stood there in his body with the long list of chores.

"Are you_ joking_ me?" he asked through gritted teeth. Merlin shrugged and said sympathetically,

"It's what I have to do every other day. Isn't it nice to switch places for once?" Arthur still looked furious.

"Maybe for you! I have to sleep on an uncomfortable bed in uncomfortable clothes with Gaius's cooking and his chores on top of yours! Plus I have to follow you around when I'm not doing those other things!" Merlin raised his eyebrows at him coldly.

"Think twice before you say anything about Gaius, please, or I'll put _you_ in the stocks. And as I've said earlier, that is _my life_ you're insulting. Some days I have more to do than that. My bed is actually healthier than yours because it keeps my back from cramping and curling in on itself like yours does because it's too comfortable, and those clothing are perfect for doing my chores. And trust me, following _you_ around is no picnic either, especially not when you're throwing insults at me every other second. We have to cooperate while we're stuck in each other's bodies and in order to do that, you have to do what I do and I have to do what you do. I don't fancy your life as much as you fancy mine, but maybe Lady Morean was right. Maybe we will thank her later. Maybe it's teaching us something about each other," he finished ranting with an ice cold tone. Arthur stared at him before replying,

"Merlin, this is _horrible_, I know I certainly won't be thanking her later! I hate _your_ life, I want mine back!" Arthur wished he could retract the words as soon as they exited his mouth. Merlin raised his eyebrows even higher and said quietly,

"I appreciate you telling me how much you respect me. I'll see you later. Don't be late with lunch." He quickly went back into Arthur's bedroom where Gwen was waiting and shut the door behind him in Arthur's - or rather his own - face. Merlin leaned back against the door, sinking to a sitting position and ignoring Gwen's look of concern.

"Arthur? Arthur, what's wrong? Is Merlin alright?" Merlin blinked before looking up at her.

"No, everything's just fine." He gave her a thin smile before adding, "I'm just a bit stressed." Gwen entwined her hand in his, another twinge of discomfort and betrayal went off in Merlin's mind as she did so. She rubbed his arm comfortingly.

"You'll be okay. If you can't handle this, no one can." Merlin gave her another fake smile.

"Thanks, Guinevere. It's nice to know you believe in me…"


	3. Chapter 3

**So this one's extra long, sorry about that. I hope you enjoy this chapter though, I made it extra special and crack-y for all you Merlin/Arthur bromance fans. Gwaine's in trouble again, too. Yay Gwaine! :3 I don't own Merlin. Enjoy and PLEASE don't forget to review!**

Merlin was more reserved for the next few days. Gaius could still find no cure, and Merlin hadn't had time to look. And, of course, Arthur couldn't look because when it came to magic, he was completely useless. He ignored Arthur when he came in to do his chores besides when he was telling him what to do. Their playful banter was gone, but Merlin couldn't help but notice, out of the corner of his eye, Arthur looking extremely guilty every time he was around him. Good. He should be. But Merlin couldn't help feeling a tiny pang of guilt himself. Maybe he shouldn't have been so hard on him. He dismissed these thoughts as quickly as they came. The prat deserved to be humbled...didn't he?

Being Arthur was both easier and harder than he expected. Mostly he just had to approve things or talk out negotiations and train the knights. The first two were easy, as he knew what Arthur wanted, but the latter was much harder. While he did have the muscle memory to do the training correctly, he found it incredibly intimidating to have the knights all rushing at him during practice, wielding swords and maces. It was dangerous, but Merlin was determined to keep Arthur's body safe, and it was harder than he thought it would be. He was not used to the physical exertion, but Arthur's body was, and he managed to keep face during the training sessions.

The hardest part of all of this was that he couldn't use magic at all. It wasn't like hiding it, where he could use it secretly. He physically was unable to use it, seeing as Arthur didn't know how to use it and he definitely wasn't born with it. Sometimes he would find himself trying to start a small fire in the fireplace by whispering an incantation, but it never worked. It was infuriating. He missed it terribly.

However, a couple weeks had passed now and Merlin was starting to find Arthur's job particularly draining. He was on speaking terms with him again, but he was becoming increasingly sharp with annoyance simply because he was exhausted and stressed out. It was about the same stress as his own in his own life, seeing as the fate of everyone in Camelot depended on his decisions, but seeing as he was burdened with both at the current time, he felt like the fate of the world rested on his shoulders.

"_Mer_lin," Arthur called for the third time. Gwen wasn't there, so they could speak freely. Merlin glanced up and stared at Arthur.

"What is it?"

"Leon came by to tell you something important. Did you even hear him?" Arthur asked sharply.

"No, what was it? I've been a bit distracted lately."

"Well, get your head out of the clouds. He said there's a sorcerer suspect in the Lower Towns and he's expecting me - meaning you - to go and get them."

Merlin rubbed his face with his hands. "Why?"

"Because there's magic loose in Camelot!" Arthur said loudly, "You can't seriously expect us to just leave him there! What if they do something?"

"How do you know if they're a sorcerer to begin with? And if they are, why does it matter where they live? They haven't done anything to you," Merlin snapped.

"Not yet they haven't," Arthur growled back, "I can't believe you! A sorcerer is the one who got us into this mess and you're defending one?"

"Arthur, I'm just saying that they've given you no reason to-"

"I don't _need_ a reason. Magic is the reason. Magic is wrong, and we need to keep security tight around here. It's been noticeably lax since you became me."

Merlin shot a cold glare at him, "Maybe it's because while you say you're fair, you don't even listen to any sorcerer you catch. You throw them in the dungeon without a second thought. Simply because of an ability they can't control." His heart rate was speeding up now, his anger at Arthur's stubbornness reaching peak level. Tensions had been running high between them to begin with, and arguing with Arthur about magic always made it much worse.

"Merlin...why are you defending them? Why do you care?"

Merlin swallowed and took a deep breath to calm himself. "I...I don't. It's just unfair. That's all."

"You haven't forgotten that magic killed both of my parents, right?"

"Of course not. But do you not remember the reason we're here in the first place is because we wanted to grant a little more freedom to the druids? To allow them to live in Camelot in peace?"

"Yes, and look where it's gotten us!" Arthur said. Merlin crossed his arms and huffed. It was moments like these when he wished he could just scream, 'I'm a sorcerer! Look at me! You know me! Being a sorcerer doesn't change who I am! Magic is not evil!' but of course, he couldn't. He dismissed Arthur quickly and crawled into bed early, asleep as soon as he hit the pillow.

((()))

The next day, as Merlin was preparing for a meeting at the Round Table, Leon entered the room abruptly, looking a bit hassled.

"Uh, sire," he started awkwardly, "Gwaine's gotten himself into an awkward situation." He paused and Merlin asked,

"Well...what is it?"

"He went hunting...by himself...and now we think he's lost." Merlin frowned.

"How long has he been gone?"

"Nearly a week, sire. If it was any less we wouldn't really be worrying….since it is...you know, Gwaine. Not to speak poorly of him, but he can get sidetracked easily." Merlin nodded.

"Understandable." He was trying his best to sound like Arthur. "Uh, what would you like me to do about it? Are you asking permission to go looking for him?"

"Well," Leon said awkwardly, "I was hoping we could keep this low key, to save Gwaine's reputation, you know. Perhaps...you and Merlin could go and use the excuse of a hunting trip?" He looked nervously at Merlin and Merlin thought for a minute.

"Of course we'll go, Leon," he said kindly, "Does anyone else know about this?"

"Just Elyan, Percival, Mordred, and I." Merlin nodded,

"Okay. You're in charge while I'm gone. Hopefully, we should make it back in a couple of days and no one will be the wiser. As far as everyone else is concerned, Gwaine was with us the whole time." Leon nodded and smiled.

"Thank you, Arthur." He left quickly and Merlin sighed. Stupid, stupid Gwaine...always getting into trouble. He smirked with affection, thinking of the kind of things he must have gotten into. He stood and suddenly realized he'd have to go ask Arthur to ready the horses. He wasn't going to like that.

Merlin knocked on Gaius's door and asked for Arthur. Gaius made a worried face and told him,

"Uh, Arthur's sleeping right now, actually. He may not appreciate being woken…" Merlin huffed with exasperation. He knew how it felt to be abruptly woken up to do what Arthur wanted.

"I'm sorry, Gaius, we have to go. Gwaine may be in trouble." Gaius gave him a look and said,

"On your head, be it." Merlin nodded and said cynically,

"Always." Gaius smirked and went to the back to wake Arthur. As expected, Arthur came out like a raging bear and asked grumpily,

"Merlin, I'm resting. I'm tired. What is it?" Merlin winced and replied,

"I'm sorry, Arthur. The knights think Gwaine's missing and we need to make sure he's okay." Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Merlin, it's _Gwaine_. He probably got drunk at a tavern, passed out, and forgot who he was or something. He'll be fine, he always comes back." He started to close the door when Merlin stuck his foot in the door and shoved it open.

"You have been more of an ass than usual since we got switched and you need to knock it off. Get off your high horse and come help me find Gwaine. He's a good friend and he's been incredibly, astoundingly loyal to you, and you owe him this. He's been missing nearly a week, Arthur, don't tell me that's not unusual." He was glaring at Arthur now, his temper being incredibly short since Arthur started acting like petulant and more like he was when they first met. He was not being the Arthur Merlin knew and loved.

Arthur held his gaze and then sighed and grumbled, "Fine. I'm coming." Merlin thought he saw a flash of guilt in his eyes, but it vanished quickly. Merlin went outside and waited for Arthur to come with the horses. He did, although he took a bit longer than he himself usually did. Arthur helped him mount the horse before mounting his own and the two sped off quickly.

Once in the woods, Arthur and Merlin were trotting side by side with no idea where to look. They'd tracked some old horse tracks that were definitely from Gwaine's horse, but they faded after a while and they had nothing to go on.

"I'm sorry," Arthur said, breaking the tense silence between them. Merlin glanced at him. Arthur hesitated, then continued, "I'm sorry for acting up lately. I'm just...I'm frustrated. I'm not used to your life, but I never meant to insult it." He looked at Merlin with big light blue eyes. "I respect you a great deal, Merlin, I do. And I'm sorry if you thought otherwise." He cleared his throat awkwardly, clearly waiting for Merlin to say something. Merlin's heart nearly melted with guilt and gratitude. Apologizing was not something the King of Camelot did often, and if he did, it was never that straightforward. His expression softened and he replied,

"And I'm sorry for throwing accusations at you left and right. I had no right to say those things to you, and I'm sorry if I made you feel bad, which no doubt I did." Merlin felt the guilt rushing off him when he said this, like the apologies were the solution to all of this stress. "I also respect you, Arthur Pendragon. And as I've told you before, I'm happy to be your servant for as long as I live." He smirked and added lightly, "Even if I have to be your king for a little while." Arthur smirked back and snorted,

"Hopefully not for much longer." Merlin chuckled and asked,

"What, am I not doing a good job?"

"You're managing to hold it together," Arthur said honestly, "But I hope I'm back running my kingdom soon." He thought for a minute before laughing, "What if my father could see me now? What would he say? A servant running the kingdom!" Merlin laughed before remembering something.

"Hey, you married Gwen, so she very well may be running the kingdom at some point," he said semi-seriously.

"Yeah, if I die first. I'm not planning on knocking off anytime soon though, Merlin. Looks like you're stuck with me for a while." Merlin laughed before remembering his vision, it rushing to him quickly. Mordred killing Arthur. He couldn't be much older than he was now. The smile vanished from his face and he went pale. Arthur glanced at him, still laughing, but stopped when he saw Merlin's face.

"Come on, Merlin, we're only joking around. I'm not going to die. That's ridiculous. Unless you're planning on killing me," he chuckled, although nervously now.

"Yeah...ridiculous," Merlin muttered. He snapped back to reality, realizing how strange he must look to Arthur at the present moment, and added, "Sorry! Just remembering something. Lancelot's death...that's all." Arthur looked at Merlin seriously.

"You don't think I'm going to die, do you? I wouldn't leave you like that." Merlin looked at him.

"Of course not. It's just, it's not something we can predict, is it?" Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose not...I'll try my best not to, though, I promise." Merlin rode ahead of him, only one thought in his head. _Don't make promises you can't keep._

((()))

To Merlin and Arthur's surprise and slight irritation, they did indeed find Gwaine in a tavern. He seemed unaware of himself, though. Arthur clapped Gwaine on the back and hissed,

"What're you doing?" Gwaine glanced back and smiled when he saw Arthur - rather, Merlin - standing there.

"Merlin!" he cried happily, "Meet my buddies!" He pulled Arthur into a headlock and noogied him. Merlin tried to hide his laughter, but Arthur took it surprisingly well.

"Yeah...ha-ha-ha…" he wrenched himself out of Gwaine's grip and stood up. "We need to go." Gwaine pouted.

"But I'm having a good time!" he protested weakly. Arthur opened his mouth when Merlin pushed him aside and whispered,

"Let me handle this. I'm you, I have more authority." He took Gwaine by the arm and hauled him up.

"Gwaine. You are a knight of Camelot. We need to go now. You're neglecting your duties." Gwaine belched in his face and whined,

"Princess. I'm having a drink. Leave me alone."

"You've been gone for six days, Gwaine!" Merlin snapped irritably. Gwaine narrowed his eyes and tilted precariously to the side.

"Six days? It's only been two days...right?" Merlin shook his head and pulled Gwaine out of the tavern by his arm, whilst both he and his companions were complaining.

"Where's your horse?" he asked Gwaine, his voice softer now. Gwaine shook his head and grinned proudly.

"Let it free." Arthur looked like his eyes were going to bug out of his head. Merlin stepped on his foot to remind him who was who and he asked,

"Let it free? Gwaine, that's a Camelot horse!" Gwaine hiccupped and replied,

"Not anymore." Arthur and Merlin glared at him briefly before Merlin sighed.

"Okay, you're going to have to ride with Ar - Merlin then," he said. Arthur then turned his glare to Merlin and exclaimed,

"What? Why?"

"Because I'm the king, Merlin," Merlin said, with no lack of amusement. Arthur glared at him, but Merlin could see he was slightly amused. When they mounted, Gwaine was sitting behind Arthur and leaned heavily on him. Arthur took a deep breath and pushed him back slightly, to give himself some room. Merlin shrugged at him, and with that, they took off.

((()))

They were about a day and half's ride from Camelot, and late in the afternoon, Gwaine started to wake up from his drunken stupor. He had been leaning on Arthur's back, snoring in his ear for a majority of the ride. Merlin took pity on him, but Arthur obviously took no such pity, as he looked miserable the entire way.

"Merlin? Arthur? Where am I?" Merlin stopped the horses and led them to a river to drink while they talked. Gwaine could stand and walk properly now, though it was a mystery to both Arthur and Merlin as to how he was able to sleep on a galloping horse.

"We're about a day's ride from Camelot, Gwaine," Merlin explained softly, "You, ah, took a trip to a tavern and seemed to lose track of time." Gwaine widened his eyes and said,

"Woah. I haven't done that in a long time. Before I was a knight. How long was I gone?" He glanced at Merlin and Arthur.

"Six days," Merlin answered, "Leon and the knights were starting to get worried."

"Oh. Sorry, Princess, it won't happen again." Merlin cleared his throat and replied,

"See that it doesn't." Gwaine looked around.

"Where's my horse? Why was I riding with Merlin?"

"You...ah, you let it free, as you put it," Merlin said. Gwaine winced and said,

"Wow. I was really bad. That's...that's bad." Merlin and Arthur nodded at the same time and Gwaine shrugged.

"Won't happen again." Then he looked as though remembering something. "Don't tell the knights," he begged, "Especially not Percival or Mordred. Please. I'd never hear the end of it." Merlin and Arthur looked at each other and smirked.

"We'll see," Merlin replied.

"Yeah," snorted Arthur in a very Merlin-like manner, "It would be a shame to humiliate you when you've done it to me so many times." Merlin glanced at him and laughed. Gwaine looked slightly confused, like he was missing something (which he was), but soon enough he broke into a grin.

((()))

Afternoon gave way to early evening, and they started slowing down, deciding to find shelter soon. Gwaine kept their spirits up, but they were getting tired nonetheless. It had been a long day. They started to get close to the Valley of the Fallen Kings when Merlin and the others heard a loud snap behind them. They all stopped their horses and glanced around. Arthur was on alert, as was Gwaine, and Merlin's eyes were narrowed. He may be handy with a sword himself in Arthur's body, but he was more worried about Arthur. He didn't know that magic was the way Merlin defended himself if trouble came, and it was the only way he defended himself.

A swift ping came from above them and an arrow narrowly missed hitting Gwaine. "Bandits! Run!" Merlin shouted. The other two agreed and moved their horses into a gallop. These bandits were apparently excellent shots, because they managed to hit Merlin's horse in the flank, knocking it over and making the other horse rear up, knocking Gwaine and Arthur off. Thankfully, they didn't hit their heads, and were quick to recover. Merlin's horse fell on top of him and Arthur's eyes were wide with fear for his friend. Merlin resisted the urge to start hyperventilating. He couldn't reach his sword and the panicked horse was just crushing him more.

"Gwaine! Help Mer - Arthur!" Arthur shouted before looking around for anything he could use as a weapon or a shield and settled on a thick branch. He swore loudly when he discovered Merlin's arms were weaker than his own and would have a much harder time wielding the large piece of wood. He did his best to shield them while Gwaine attempted and failed to get the horse off of Merlin. Hurting the horse to get it to move might crush Merlin beyond their help, and he wasn't strong enough to move it himself. The horse was panicking too much to do anything by itself.

Merlin yelped when he felt his ribs cracking under the weight of the horse, and he nearly blacked out in pain when the horse bucked it's head and smashed it's skull against Merlin's. He tried his best to stay awake, but it was no good. He was quickly losing consciousness. The last thing he saw was an arrow headed straight for his head and he could only watch in horror as Arthur screamed,

"Merlin!" and he saw his own eyes reflect gold and change the arrow's course.


	4. Chapter 4

**A lot of angst in this chapter. Woohoo! Thanks to everyone who reads and follows this story, I quite like it myself. It helps fill the gap in my life that Merlin created when it was cancelled. Rawr. Anywho, I don't own Merlin (because if I did, it would have way more seasons) aaand please remember to review. Thanks!**

Merlin awoke later, although he could not be sure what time. It was dark, although there was a pleasant fire going. It must have been the middle of the night. He sat up quickly, regretting it instantly when his vision went white and the world spun and his head panged in pain. He winced, settling back down, before glancing around. He immediately saw Arthur's eyes on him, or rather his own eyes, and took a sharp intake of breath.

"Arthur...what happened?" He could not read his friend's expression and that terrified him. Had he realized he'd performed magic? Had he performed more once Merlin passed out? Gwaine was asleep, but suspiciously quiet.

"There were bandits and Gwaine and I saved you from them. It's lucky Gwaine's comfortable in his own skin," Arthur snapped irritably, although his eyes just held relief, not annoyance.

"The horse?" Merlin rasped.

"You were trapped under it longer than we hoped. We finally managed to calm it down enough to get it to stand up without stepping on you or trampling you. You're really lucky you're alive, Merlin. In fact, we're both lucky you're alive. If you had gone and died, I wouldn't have had a body to go back to." Again, Arthur was speaking, but Merlin saw something different in his eyes than what he was saying. He was truly grateful that Merlin was okay, and not just because it meant his body was okay. Merlin winced as he shifted, feeling his broken ribs shifting with him. He looked down and noticed he wasn't wearing a shirt and immediately blushed. Then he realized it wasn't even his own body, so he shouldn't be embarrassed. But then, Arthur had only seen him without a shirt once or twice, maybe. But it was Arthur's body, so it didn't matter. Merlin shook his head to clear these thoughts.

"So are you two going to tell me why you're addressing each other by your own names?" a voice from the corner asked. Merlin and Arthur jumped, glancing at where Gwaine was now sitting up. Merlin suspected he wasn't asleep, but he hadn't exactly made that his first priority.

"Uh…" Merlin started, "It's complicated." Gwaine raised an eyebrow.

"We've got time." Arthur sighed and started,

"This is going to sound completely ridiculous…"

"But we got our bodies switched by a sorceress and haven't been able to change back," Merlin finished. He blushed again and Gwaine looked at them both for a minute.

"Really? That's...that's…" he broke into an amused grin, "Ha!" He laughed hard, banging the tree with his fist and laughed until he couldn't breathe. Merlin chuckled, but he winced again as his ribs ached painfully.

"You believe us?" Arthur asked, wide-eyed.

Gwaine wiped a tear away from his eye. "I knew you two were acting odd! But this is just…" He broke into another fit of laughter until Arthur threw a pebble at him.

"It's not funny, Gwaine," he said sharply. Gwaine laughed harder and pointed at him.

"It is you, Arthur!" he exclaimed. It took him a good five more minutes to get it out before he stopped and sighed with amusement. "I gotta tell Percival and Mordred about this.."

"NO!" Arthur yelped, "Don't."

"Why not?" Gwaine said, crossing his arms.

"Because otherwise we'll tell them about your drunken escapades," Merlin threatened. Gwaine paled and grumbled,

"Fine…" Arthur glanced at Merlin once the conversation was over, a little warily, he noticed.

"What's wrong?" he asked, after Gwaine was really asleep. Arthur frowned and looked down at his hands.

"I saved you," he started lamely. Merlin nodded.

"I know," he replied. Arthur glanced up at him, fear in his eyes and added,

"I did it with magic." Merlin's eyes widened slightly. Now it was out. He couldn't avoid this line of questioning and he knew what was coming next. "Do I have magic, Merlin? What does that make me? Or did the sorceress do this?" Merlin sighed and weighed his options. Lie to Arthur and say the sorceress did it or tell him the truth now. He let out a low hiss and shifted so he was comfortable. He might as well be, if Arthur was going to kill him.

"No one can give you magic. You can either do it, learn it, or you're born with it, and that's it," Merlin started.

"So how can I do it?" Merlin stared at the ground.

"Whose body are you in, Arthur?"

"...Yours," he said, obviously not catching on. Merlin raised his eyes and his pained expression was evident on his features.

"So who can really do magic here, Arthur?"

"I don't...Merlin, what do you mean?"

"You don't have magic. You never have and likely never will. Who is the only other person in this scenario that could possibly have magic? We both know it's not Gwaine." Arthur's eyes widened more.

"It can't be…you're not...that's impossible," he stammered, "You're...you're Merlin...I've known you too long...I would have known...wouldn't I?" He looked on the verge of tears. Merlin considered his position for a minute. Here was Arthur, told from birth that magic was evil and his mother had died because of it. He had almost never seen the good side of magic for his whole life, and every single time he did see magic, it was against him and used for evil purposes. And then magic killed his father, in fact, Merlin killed his father, by accident. Arthur had no idea that Morgana had sent an amulet to prevent Uther's recovery and made Merlin's healing spell kill his father. He had no reason to believe magic was good or at least, not entirely bad.

Not only did he not understand this, but he was also confused, frustrated, and not comfortable in Merlin's skin, the skin of the most powerful warlock in history, according to some. He was holding together better than most would.

"Arthur," Merlin said, very slowly and very softly, as though speaking to a scared child, "I have had magic since I was born. I know what your stand on it is, and I beg of you not to think badly of me. It is not something I can control or suppress. But I do know one thing: magic is not evil. I promise you, I am the same man you've known for years, and I have done nothing to prove any differently. My magic has only been used for good, and in all honesty, mostly been used for you." He took a deep breath and actually found a lump in his own throat. He'd wanted to tell Arthur for so long, and here he was doing it. He wasn't expecting these intense emotions from either of them.

Arthur's face reflected a lot of things in a small span of time. First anger, betrayal, confusion, sadness, anger again, frustration, confusion...He didn't know what to think. This was_ Merlin_.

"Get away from me," were the first words out of his mouth. Merlin's mouth hung open.

"I can't exactly - "

"You lied to me." Merlin immediately understood that Arthur was more upset because he lied to him more than because he was a sorcerer.

"Arthur, I had to, you have a death penalty for - "

"What else have you lied about? What are you planning to do with my form? Take over my kingdom? You've been waiting a long time for this, haven't you?" Merlin felt his heart breaking, slowly being torn to pieces. The first tear ran down his cheek.

"No! Arthur, I can't be you. I don't want Camelot! What would I do with Camelot?" Arthur's eyes glittered with distrust and betrayal.

"Then what do you want?"

"Don't speak to me like a stranger, Arthur," Merlin said, tears catching in his throat and making it come out a rasp.

"Well that's what you are!" Arthur suddenly shouted. Merlin saw Gwaine jump from where he was sleeping. Great, now Gwaine was awake.

"I am not a stranger. I am your friend, and I have been for many years now. Arthur, how can you not look past your prejudice and see that?" Merlin hoped Gwaine was alert and planning to say something in his defense. Or maybe he felt the same as Arthur. He didn't know.

"Because all my life I have experienced differently from what you're telling me!" Arthur stood up and started pacing. "My mother was killed by magic, my father! Many, many others in Camelot as well! There were plots, involving magic, there were assassins, who were sorcerers! Morgana betrayed me because she had magic! When have I ever seen magic do anything but evil?!"

"More than you think, Arthur," Merlin said, finding his voice and making it as strong as he could possibly make it, "I have healed you with magic, saved you and others with magic. Do you remember, when you and Will and I were in that village and there was a whirlwind that made the bandits leave? That was me, and you would have killed Will for defending me if he wasn't already dying. Remember the druid girl who escaped from the cage and you later killed her in her Bastet form? Me. Remember that time you were hunting with Mithian when Gwen was gone? That deer you were hunting was Gwen; because Morgana turned her into a deer with hopes that you would shoot and kill her without knowing it. I averted the arrow that saved her life. Do you remember even further back, that rubbish servant who was taking credit for everything I was doing? You thought he killed that beast for you. ME. Who bargained with a sorcerer to give you a second chance when you screwed up the first one when you released the unicorn's curse on Camelot? ME."

Arthur was back to his normal self for a split second when he snorted, "Merlin, you couldn't have done those things, you…" then he was back to distrustful Arthur, "You freed the Bastet girl? Why? She killed people!" Merlin's eyes glowered with pain of remembering and anger at Arthur's stubbornness.

"Because I thought she was a regular druid and I could not stand to see anyone with magic put in a cage because of it. It could have been me in that cage." He winced, remembering he had said the same thing to her….to Freya… "I loved her, you know. And you killed her." Arthur looked guilty for a minute before it passed and gave way to his anger again. Then his eyes widened in recognition.

"It was you...you were the sorcerer in red. You killed my father!" He looked about to attack him, but he simply clenched his fists and glared at him. "Why?"

"I did not kill your father," Merlin said steadily, although he was still crying, "That was not my doing."

"Then whose was it?" Arthur yelled. He picked up his own sword, fingering it lightly...and threateningly.

"Morgana. She hated Uther, although I never think she got to hating you." Merlin paused for a minute before explaining, "Morgana did not betray you because magic corrupted her. She betrayed you because she thought you would not accept her for who she was. Your hatred and prejudice against magic drove her away, Arthur! But she never hated you because I think she believes you are the only one who could possibly give her a second chance. She knew Uther would grant her no such thing, which is why she killed him." He spit out the last three words, glaring at Arthur furiously, his hands shaking out of control now. Merlin saw Gwaine sitting still, his eyes wide open, just watching their conversation.

"Are you going to betray me, Merlin," Arthur asked quietly.

"Never," Merlin hissed back, "I only hope you'll grant me the same courtesy."

"What would you do if I tried to kill you right now?" Arthur asked curiously. Merlin stared at him thoughtfully for a minute before answering,

"I wouldn't let you."

"Why not?"

"Because you need me. Plus, I'm in your body, or have you forgotten? You kind of need this back."

"I never said I needed you," Arthur snapped harshly. Merlin took a sharp intake of breath and tried to think that Arthur didn't mean it.

"We both need each other," Merlin said softly, "We're two sides of the same coin. Our destinies are entwined." Arthur looked at him, flabbergasted.

"Says who?"

"Says the 'powers that be' I suppose."

"You're making this up so I won't kill you."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are." Gwaine's head went back and forth, from Merlin to Arthur and back again, like he was watching a tennis match. "If you didn't make it up then who fed you this ridiculous story?"

"The Great Dragon."

"You believe a dragon?"

"Not just him. The druid people, and most magical folk of the Old Religion." Arthur grimaced.

"The Old Religion? Merlin, that's not to be trusted at all, regardless of what you say about magic. The Old Religion was barbaric." Merlin glared at him hotly.

"How would you know?"

"I…" Arthur paused, "Because I…okay you got me. I still think you're being ridiculous. No one has a destiny, a man makes his own path." Merlin shook his head.

"Not in our case. Do you remember the dwarf on the bridge that we had to cross to see the Fisher King? He said you would need Strength and Magic along with Courage. It's funny, Arthur, you never made the connection. Gwaine was strength. Did you just forget magic?" Arthur frowned for a minute and said,

"Oh. I just thought...I didn't think you could ever…" He let out a frustrated hiss and asked, "Why did you lie to me?"

"I don't know if you've noticed, but you have a death penalty on the heads of any sorcerer, without a trial. Magic is punishable by death." Arthur looked torn.

"But we were...you know me, Merlin. Did you really think I would kill you?"

"I didn't want to put you in that position," Merlin answered simply. Arthur snorted and looked away. Merlin sighed and looked down at his feet. He hated arguing with Arthur, because he knew it hurt them both. He glanced up at Gwaine, who gave him a knowing smirk before drifting back off to sleep. Arthur didn't speak to him again, so Merlin decided it was safe to go back to sleep.

((()))

Morgana had been brought word of the king and two friends in the forest. She did not realize it would be just Gwaine and Merlin. Very risky for him, to be going out in the forest with so little protection. When she stumbled upon their camp, she smiled to herself. She didn't have the heart to kill him herself, so she would have someone else do it for her. Of course, she'd tried using Merlin before, but maybe it could work now with just Gwaine protecting Arthur. What she did not take into account was their switched bodies.

She whispered an incantation into Arthur's ear, who she thought was Merlin. He groaned in his sleep before turning over to sleep in a different position. She left quickly, watching Merlin, who she thought was Arthur, sleeping peacefully. He was hurt, she noticed. Good. It would make this a lot easier. She felt a twinge of regret for what she was doing, but she needed to be queen. Deserved it. Not her bratty brother.

((()))

Arthur awoke early the next morning with a different mindset. Last night, when he was still himself, he had almost forgiven Merlin for lying to him. Almost. Now the only thing he had in mind was to kill him. He had to kill him. He stood slowly and sleepily, quietly picking up the sword on the ground and unsheathing it. The sound of it unsheathing woke Gwaine, who was a light sleeper when he wasn't drunk. Gwaine gave a soft grunt before turning over and through squinted eyes, saw Arthur standing over Merlin, ready to plunge the sword straight through him.

Immediately alert, Gwaine shouted, "Arthur, no!" before launching himself in front of Merlin. He fell on Merlin hard, waking him up and making him gasp from the pain from the pressure on his broken ribs. Arthur couldn't stop until it was too late, plunging the sword into Gwaine's abdomen, barely missing his stomach and lungs. Gwaine took a sharp intake of breath and grabbed the king by his scruff, hitting his head hard against a tree. Arthur went unconscious and Gwaine groaned. Merlin was breathing hard from the surprise and now, pain. Gwaine's weight had made his injuries worse, but Gwaine was worse off than he was now.

"Gwaine!" Merlin said urgently. He pushed the knight off himself before holding him up. He saw the blood from where Arthur had stabbed him and immediately put pressure on the bloody wound. "Oh God, oh God, oh God…Gwaine!" Gwaine's eyelids fluttered as he looked down at his stomach.

"I've had worse, no need to worry," he said deliriously. Merlin cursed loudly. He could not summon Kilgarrah, he could not use his magic, and he didn't have the strength to get all three of them home. He felt utterly useless and he was on the verge of panic.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry this took so long, guys! I was on vacation and then life just..bleh. Anyway, this wraps up my cute-sie little Arthur and Merlin bromance fic (with just the slightest splash of Merthur implication). I hope you liked it! I don't own Merlin. PLEASE don't forget to review!**

Merlin fought the urge to begin hyperventilating. He had to keep his cool. He told Gwaine to keep his hands pressed hard on the wound and not to let go. Arthur was still out cold. Merlin ran to the horse, checking it for any bandages. He cursed when he saw how little there was left after treating himself. It wasn't enough. He ran back to Gwaine, his ribs still incredibly sore and broken from the previous day. He sat his friend up and pulled his shirt over his head. Gwaine gave him a cheeky smirk and Merlin muttered,

"Shut up, Gwaine." Gwaine was always incredibly immature when other people took off his shirt for him, just because. Merlin took out the cloth that he had gotten wet with some of their canteen water and dabbed the wound carefully, wiping away the blood. Gwaine winced when Merlin pressed on it hard and then put a bandage on it. The bandage soaked through quickly. Merlin sucked in a breath and glanced down at his own bandages. "Oh heck…" He gritted his teeth while he ripped off his bandages and applied them to Gwaine. Gwaine made a face, but Merlin muttered cynically,

"Yeah, gross, but do you want to die?" Gwaine snorted weakly and Merlin glanced up at him with concern. "Stay with me, buddy," he said seriously, giving Gwaine a light, affectionate smack on the head. The bandages were wet quickly once again and Merlin groaned with frustration. He was losing too much blood, too fast. He looked around quickly for his own shirt and located it quickly, pressing that against Gwaine's stomach. Merlin sighed with relief when he saw the bleeding start to ebb, but he noticed Gwaine was nearly unconscious.

"Gwaine!" he said loudly, before smacking him again, "Don't do this to me, you have to stay awake!" He wished he could use his magic to make him stop bleeding, but Arthur was unconscious and crazy at the moment. Merlin swore loudly once again, making sure to utilize his most colorful swear words that he used for occasions such as this.

"Quite the vocabulary, Merlin…" Gwaine muttered, before drifting off into unconsciousness. Merlin widened his eyes. He quickly checked his pulse. Still alive, but he wouldn't make it long if they didn't get back to Camelot, which was about a half a day's journey away.

Merlin took the initiative, sighing, and decided he would have to haul their sorry asses back to Camelot one way or another. He picked up Arthur first, being the easiest to carry, and set him on one horse, the one he would have been riding. Then he put Gwaine on the second horse. He tied them both securely to the horses so they wouldn't fall off and then started to lead the horses by their reins in the right direction. He was cold since he was without a shirt and the wind was sharp and chilly. He glanced at his unconscious friends and noticed they were both shaking from the cold. He pulled the blankets from their bags and tied those over them as well.

Merlin walked with a heavy burden. He had two unconscious knights with him, one bearing his body and the other was at risk of catching infection or being bedridden for weeks while he recuperated. Then there was the fact that Arthur had just tried to kill him, Merlin assumed, because he knew he had magic. But something was off, so something was now wrong with Arthur mentally. His ribs were broken, he didn't know how many, and his chest was very, very sore. And he was guilty. Very guilty. He had lied to Arthur about his magic, for good reason, but now he didn't know if Arthur could ever forgive him. What would happen to their prophecy then? What would happen to their friendship then? He knew officially they couldn't be friends, being a servant and a king, but Merlin knew that was a load of horse dung and he and Arthur were friends. Or at least, he thought they were.

He heard Arthur stirring finally, and Merlin had taken the precaution of tying his hands behind his back in case he was still crazy. He heard a small, "Merlin?" before an angrier, "Merlin!"

Merlin glanced at him and grinned when he saw a bemused looking Arthur. "Morning, sunshine." He stopped the horses and walked back to his friend.

"Why am I tied up?"

"Only because you tried to kill me and ended up almost killing Gwaine in the process," Merlin replied without missing a beat. Arthur looked stunned as Merlin started undoing his bonds.

"I did what?"

"You heard me."

"Did I really?"

"If you don't believe me, take a look at Gwaine. He's in critical condition because of you. Not that I'm blaming you, you were obviously not yourself." Arthur raised an eyebrow and glanced back at Gwaine, who was still out cold. His hands were freed and felt his head and found a nasty bump.

"Why do I have a lump on my head?" he asked stupidly.

"Gwaine knocked you out. It seems to have worked in fixing whatever was wrong with you," Merlin said happily. Arthur tried to get a firm hold on his surroundings, but his head was still swimming and he was seeing double. Trying to steady his vision, he put a hand out, trying to find Merlin's face. He was seeing two and the minute he located the real one, he latched on to it with his hand.

"Arthur," Merlin said in a muffled voice, "What are you doing?" Arthur shook his head and replied drowsily,

"I'm seeing double, I'm trying to see single again. Just hold on a sec." He swung his leg over his horse and stumbled off of it, his legs buckling under him when he tried to stand. Merlin caught him quickly, their faces inches away. Merlin blushed furiously and immediately righted the king.

"Better?" he asked.

"Thanks," Arthur grunted. He stared at a tree in the distance for a minute more before his vision started to go back to normal. "Okay, better now." Then he looked at Merlin as though seeing him for the first time and noticed he was holding the horse's reins.

"Have you been walking us back this whole time?" Merlin nodded quickly. "Don't your feet hurt?" Merlin nodded again, but added,

"I'm your servant, I do this all the time."

"Yeah, but you're also a so - " he paused. He couldn't say it. He bit his lip as he added softly, "You're also my friend. Let me take the reins for a bit." He gave Merlin a reassuring smile and waited for him to mount the now vacant horse and started walking the horses back to Camelot.

"Arthur," Merlin started nervously a few minutes into the silence, "You're acting...different."

"What are you on about?" Arthur called back.

"Ever since you learned I had magic, you're acting all...nice." Arthur froze, hesitating for a minute before asking without looking back,

"Am I not usually nice? Be careful answering this one."

"Well...I mean you are, but you never offer to do my job for me."

"Maybe I've had a change of heart." Merlin snorted,

"You've definitely had a change of something."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Are you sure this has nothing to do with me being a sorcerer?" Arthur sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose impatiently. This was not a conversation he wanted to have, especially not right now.

"Of course not, Merlin, I just feel bad that - "

"You feel bad that you've condemned magic in front of me so many times and treated me horribly and - "

"Don't put words in my mouth, Merlin!" Arthur snapped angrily.

"It's what you were going to say, wasn't it?"

"You hope it was what I was going to say," Arthur replied viciously. His temper was incredibly short at the moment and he really, really didn't want to argue with Merlin right now.

"Well, what were you going to say then, turnip head?" Merlin added lightly. This banter, so normal, so incredibly "Arthur and Merlin" was too casual for Arthur at the moment. He wanted to bite someone's head off and his own head felt like it was about to implode. The stress of everything was getting to him. He stopped the horses and turned around to look at Merlin.

"EVERYTHING that I've done in the past twelve hours, except for attacking you and Gwaine by accident, has been because you were a sorcerer, Merlin! I've grown up believing that magic is evil and you can never ever trust it and now I've just been confronted with the knowledge that one of the people I'm closest to is a sorcerer! Two, in fact, and look where Morgana's gone! I don't know what to expect from you! What do you want from me? What do you want me to do? How am I supposed to act around you? Like everything is normal? Or like you're way more powerful than I am and could probably smite me off the face of the earth in an instant if I do something you don't like? Tell me, Merlin, because I am hopelessly lost!" Arthur shouted, panting when he was done. His face was red and his eyes blazing with several different emotions Merlin couldn't read on his own face. Merlin looked down at the ground and said quietly,

"I don't know."

Arthur looked flabbergasted and asked him, "What was that? I couldn't hear you."

Merlin looked up at him with a hard glance. "I don't know."

"Well, that's fantastic, because I don't either! Looks like we're on the same page then! Great! Thanks for your help, Merlin." Arthur scowled and turned to face front. Merlin offered softly,

"I'll take the horses if you like." He wanted to, despite his feet still burning from walking for hours and his chest seized painfully every time he took a breath. He didn't want Arthur to treat him differently because he was a sorcerer. Arthur looked at him strangely, but kept walking.

"No. You're hurt. Stay on the horse or I'll tie you to it." Merlin sighed and decided it would be best to do what Arthur wanted. He slumped forward on his horse and gratefully allowed sleep to take him for a while.

((()))

The next time Merlin awoke, it was in Gaius's chambers. He sat up quickly, glancing around before feeling another sharp pain in his chest. He groaned loudly and involuntarily and two figures sitting in quiet conversation were immediately alert and noticed Merlin was awake. The first, Gaius, rushed over to him and pushed him back down.

"Merlin, it's very important you don't move around until your ribs heal!" he scolded. Merlin gave him a scandalized look before glancing at the other figure in the room. Arthur.

"Morning sunshine," Arthur said nervously. Merlin stared at him for a minute before grinning. Arthur looked relieved.

"How did I get here?" Merlin asked, frowning.

"Surprisingly enough, your scrawny little body is still strong enough to carry my body, so I managed to carry you in here, right after Gwaine," Arthur replied, almost proudly. Merlin looked around, suddenly alert.

"Gwaine. Where is he? Gaius, is he okay?"

"Gwaine's fine, Merlin. You were right to be worried, though, he could have died. It's you I'm worried about."

"Me?"

"If you make a wrong move, you'll puncture a lung. You are very lucky you didn't, seeing as Arthur was telling me all that went on on your way home."

Merlin winced. "Did he tell you everything?"

Gaius smirked. "Just about." So now Gaius knew that Arthur and Gwaine knew Merlin's secret.

"You were crying out in your sleep," Arthur interrupted abruptly.

"I what?" Merlin asked, surprised.

"You were trying to do magic in your sleep, I think," Arthur said, blushing slightly.

"How do you know?"

"He never left your side," Gaius answered for him. Arthur looked away when Merlin looked at him and smiled.

"You did what? You were worried, weren't you?"

"I wasn't, I just wanted...to make sure my body was alright. That's all," Arthur snapped playfully. Merlin grinned and gave him a weak slap.

"You were worried!" Arthur smacked him in the head in retaliation, a bit roughly, and Merlin's head spun for a second.

"Thanks, clotpole," he mumbled mutinously, waiting for the room to stop spinning. Gaius announced he had to run an errand, leaving Merlin and Arthur alone with a sleeping Gwaine.

"Sit up," Arthur said, the minute Gaius left.

"Gaius said not to," Merlin replied.

"He was just trying to make sure you didn't jump out of bed and try to get back to your duties or something. You've been here for days, your - my ribs - are almost completely healed. Seriously, you're fine," Arthur said, and when Merlin frowned, he added, "Do you not trust me?" Merlin rolled his eyes and sat up slowly, touching his chest experimentally. It felt okay, but it was still bruised in some parts.

The minute he was sitting upright, Arthur pulled him into a tight hug. The bruises whined with pain, but Merlin ignored it. He rarely got hugs from Arthur and he would take them when he could get them. He hugged him back just as tightly, not wanting to let go. They stayed like this for a good five minutes before they heard a snort from Gwaine,

"He bloody held your hand while you were asleep too. Something you want to say, Arthur?" Arthur froze before turning around quickly.

"Gwaine!" he said loudly, "Aren't you supposed to be dying?"

"I've been dying for days, I'm bored. I saw you. Don't deny it."

Arthur turned back to Merlin and said, "I did not." Merlin rolled his eyes and said,

"Of course not." Gwaine pitched in,

"It was the only way he could get you to stop yelling magic tricks in your sleep. It worked like a charm." Then it was Merlin's turn to blush as they both snapped,

"Shut up, Gwaine!"

Arthur turned his attention back to Merlin and said, "I'm glad you're okay." Merlin nodded.

"I'm glad you're okay." Arthur frowned.

"I'm fine."

"I know. Still getting over the fact that I'm a sorcerer?"

Arthur shrugged. "We can tackle that if it becomes a problem. I've decided it doesn't matter as long as you're still Merlin."

"The one and only."

"Good."

"Good."

Gwaine snorted, followed by a small "Ow", no doubt in pain from his injuries. Merlin smirked, which made Arthur smirk and they both glanced back at their friend. As way of their silent communication, Arthur's smirk totally said that Gwaine deserved it. Merlin raised an eyebrow to gently remind him that he almost died because of Arthur. Then Arthur rolled his eyes. That made Merlin notice something. Arthur rolled his eyes. His own eyes.

Merlin's eyes widened as he looked at his hands. They were his hands. He looked at Arthur again. He wasn't dreaming. Arthur looked like himself again. How had they not noticed? Merlin's mouth formed an 'O' as he experimentally poked Arthur. Arthur frowned in response and said,

"Don't poke me. Why did you poke me?" Merlin replied slowly,

"I think we're back to ourselves. Gwaine?" Gwaine looked over and raised his eyebrows.

"Well look at that. You guys switched places. Or are you back to normal?" He smirked mischievously and waited for them to decide. Arthur stared at Merlin and Merlin stared back before Arthur broke into a grin.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, "I'm me again!" Merlin looked down at his chest and frowned when he found that he was still the one injured.

"How...oh that's just not fair," he whined, poking his chest and finding it was still bruised.

"So are we back to normal then?" Arthur asked, ignoring Merlin's whine.

Merlin looked at him seriously and answered, "Yes, I think so. But I think we were meant to learn something from this, Arthur." Arthur scoffed, but when he saw Merlin's look, he looked down at his feet and said,

"Uh, yes. Yes we have. I...I promise not to push you around so much."

"And I promise not to get on your nerves as much as I can help it." Merlin's lips curled up in the corner for a slight smile. "Although I'm not sure how well we may be able to keep to those promises. It may just be back to normal." Arthur snorted,

"Yeah, totally normal, what with you and your magic." Merlin shushed him and in response, Arthur pulled him into a headlock and noogied him affectionately. Merlin protested and Gwaine laughed at them both. Gaius walked in on the scene and looked scandalized.

"Arthur Pendragon, you release him right now or he may well be more injured than before!" Merlin rolled his eyes at his overprotective caretaker and said,

"Gaius, I'm fine, really." Gaius frowned, but said nothing more. He seemed to notice they had gone back to normal, but he seemed to have nothing else to say about this either. What was there to say?

Lady Morean watched the two boys through her telepathic window, through the knight Gwaine, and smiled to herself. They may never come to thank her, but she knew they would be thankful for it. They would be better for it. And that's all anyone who knew the prophecy every wanted.

Two sides of the same coin, two halves to form a whole.

Two personalities radically different that needed to fit like pieces of a puzzle in order to make Albion whole.


End file.
